Kobe Bryant Says Carmelo Anthony Is Hardest Player In NBA To Guard

Kobe Bryant recently scored his 30,000 point, and for all the scoring and offensive explosion he’s caused throughout his career, Kobe has always been a stout defender.

Bryant for a good part of his career has drawn an opposing teams best scorer or player, so he has some expertise in describing a lethal scorer.

Kobe sat down with ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith recently for a chat, and when the conversation about tough scorers and offensive players came up Smith asked Mamba who the toughest cover in the NBA is.

Kobe may have surprised a few people north of Miami when he stated it was Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony.

“For me, yeah,” he responded. “Melo does it all and he’s as strong as a bull. For me, I weigh (180 pounds) soaking wet. Going up against that bull, man, it’s fun but it’s extremely challenging.”

“He’s always been a player that I enjoyed guarding the most,” Bryant said. “He was the most difficult because of his size and his speed.”

From a pure offensive standpoint, I agree with Kobe. For all the great things LeBron does, his outside shot is not as consistent as Melo’s, and his post game is also not as lethal as Carmelo either.